UKIP Would Have Won 83 Seats Under Fair Electoral System

Research has shown UKIP would have won 83 seats in the general election under proportional representation. Despite securing around 3.8m votes the party had a disastrous night as they failed to take any of their target seats.

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The poor showing was compounded when Nigel Farage made good on his pledge to stand down as leader after narrowly losing South Thanet. UKIP high command had always known the party would get a disproportionately small number of seats given their national vote, but the results were far worse than their lowest expectations.

Paul Nuttall told the Daily Express: “The first past the post system was designed for the 19th century and has no place in a 21st century functioning democracy. The fact a political party can poll nearly four million votes and have one seat is an affront to democracy.

“Electoral reform has to be put back to the front of the agenda.”

Outgoing UKIP leader Farage said the current voting system was “bankrupt”. He added: “One party can get 50 per cent of the vote in Scotland and nearly 100per cent of the seats, and our party can get four million votes and just one seat,”

“For those reasons there are a lot of angry UKIP people out there. They’re not giving up on Ukip, but absolutely determined that we get a fairer, more reflective system. But there’s something deeper about this first past the post system.

“What it’s led to is a General Election in which, because the system that was designed to produce majority government couldn’t do it, has led to a totally negative General Election campaign.”

The Liberal Democrats also were disadvantaged by first past the post, they dropped into single figures but would have gained a respectable 53 seats under a fairer system. UKIPs misery was compounded by the fact the SNP got less than half the number of votes it did but won 56 seats.